VAT registration threshold checker UAE

The Federal Tax Authority sets a mandatory registration threshold of AED 375,000 and a voluntary threshold of AED 187,500. Both are measured on taxable supplies plus imports. A business above the higher figure must register; one between the two may choose to; one below the lower figure cannot register on supplies alone. Voluntary registration is also open where taxable expenses pass AED 187,500, which helps start-ups that spend before they sell.

The FTA also sets out the period you measure over and how quickly you must apply once you cross the line. Read its registration page for those details before you rely on a borderline result.

• Below AED 187,500: registration not available on supplies
• AED 187,500 to AED 375,000: voluntary registration available
• Above AED 375,000: registration mandatory

Count standard-rated sales and zero-rated sales, because a zero-rated supply is still a taxable supply. Add the value of goods and services you import that would be taxable if supplied in the UAE. Leave out exempt supplies, such as certain residential rents and local passenger transport, and income that is outside the scope of UAE VAT.

• Include: standard-rated sales at 5%
• Include: zero-rated sales, such as qualifying exports
• Include: imports of goods and services
• Exclude: exempt supplies and out-of-scope income

Two businesses use the checker in the same month and get different answers for different reasons.

• A home bakery in Ajman sells cakes worth AED 214,000 and imports packaging worth AED 9,000. Total AED 223,000: voluntary registration is available but not required.
• A Fujairah marine parts trader sells AED 342,000 locally and exports AED 18,000 at zero rate, and imports stock worth AED 41,000. Total AED 401,000: registration is mandatory.

A business that is not yet registered can still keep its books in HelloBooks with each sale tagged by VAT treatment. The AI agent keeps a running total of taxable supplies and imports and tells you, in plain English, when you pass AED 187,500 and again as you approach AED 375,000.

Registration itself happens on EmaraTax and is done by you or your tax agent. Once your TRN arrives, HelloBooks starts adding it to tax invoices and preparing VAT 201 workings for your review.